On Feb. 13, children and their parents braved the rain to come out and participate in the inaugural Children’s Parade and Contest, organized by the Northwest Asian Weekly and sponsored by Panda Express. Of the nearly 80 participants, there were 20 finalists who received tickets from the Space Needle, Seattle Aquarium, and Woodland Park Zoo. The three winners got tickets and $50, $30, and $20, respectively, from the parade sponsors.

Wu wasn’t the only one with a perspective on Asian American youth and classical music. The Tacoma Youth Symphony’s other Chinese American co-concertmaster Tonya Yu, its former Korean American member Suzee Hong, and Kenneth Truong, a Vietnamese American member of the Garfield Orchestra, also elaborated on the role that classical music plays in their lives.

“We will have racks of lambs, mashed potatoes and gravy, pie, bún bò huế (noodle soup) and mì quảng (noodles with a little broth),” said Phung Vu, describing the mix of American and Vietnamese food at her family’s Thanksgiving table. Like Vu, Minh Nguyen’s family also incorporates Vietnamese dishes into a traditional Thanksgiving meal. “Besides some traditional American dishes, we also have spring rolls and tempura shrimps, and for desserts, we like banana chè (a coconut-based pudding),” said Nguyen.

Ten students received $2,000 scholarships from the Northwest Asian Weekly Foundation’s Summer Youth Leadership Program (SYLP). This is the first time the Foundation partnered up with the Boeing Company.